2 LaBellas portrayed in pending Longo appeal

Which Daniel LaBella was really in charge as chief of the Utica Police Department in 2009 when Investigator Joseph Longo Jr. killed his wife and then himself?

Which Daniel LaBella was really in charge as chief of the Utica Police Department in 2009 when Investigator Joseph Longo Jr. killed his wife and then himself?

Was it the LaBella who delegated to trusted supervisors the duty to do what they felt was necessary to make sure Longo's mounting erratic behavior would not be ignored, as the city's attorneys argue?

Or was it the LaBella, as the family of Longo's wife believes, who gave his former partner the impression that he would not pay a serious price no matter what threats he spoke to his wife?

As city attorneys seek to postpone next year's wrongful death civil trial, federal court documents filed by both sides paint a picture of two very different LaBellas.

The contradictory personas are the result of legal efforts to either remove LaBella from individual liability, or to include him as the primary face of a police department that Palumbo-Longo's family believes didn't do enough to rein in Longo's downward spiral.

"Chief LaBella presided over a disaster," attorney T. Josiah Pertz wrote on behalf of Palumbo-Longo's family. "As Longo's former partner and friend, Chief LaBella made sure Longo was spared from the actual consequences mandated by department policy and good and common practice."

By LaBella not ordering Longo to undergo a psychiatric evaluation or an internal investigation regarding allegations of domestic violence, Pertz wrote, "These implicit assurances created or at least enhanced the risk to which Kristin was exposed, ultimately resulting in her death."

But legal counsel for LaBella and the city see things differently, arguing that LaBella had little direct personal involvement in the handling of Longo's behavior.

"There was a response, investigation, and action after Kristin's calls," Ashley Hayes explained on behalf of the Utica Police Department.

"Longo was sanctioned, including taking his guns, forbidding him to visit the marital home while on duty, confining him to desk duty, and suggesting and confirming that he was in counseling," Hayes continued, "none of which could be viewed as conveying a message to Longo that his conduct would be condoned or that he would not be reprimanded for future misconduct."

While the civil trial remains set to begin in U.S. District Court on Jan. 13, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals has yet to decide whether LaBella will be granted qualified immunity.

In the meantime, the federal appeals court also will rule "as soon as practicable" whether to delay the trial until LaBella's immunity issue is resolved.

The city argues any delay would not "substantially harm" anyone involved in the litigation. But by not moving forward as scheduled, Palumbo-Longo's attorneys believe Longo's surviving children, the community and the Utica Police Department would suffer most.

"This case is about accountability in a department riddled with cronyism, and the department should not be allowed to escape this critical evaluation any longer," Pertz wrote.

"It is (our) hope that a verdict may lead the UPD to change its policies, strengthening the UPD's response to domestic violence, changing their attitudes toward promotion, and clarifying the procedure for requiring submission to a psychiatric examination or a fitness for duty evaluation," Pertz stated.

Follow @OD_LaDuca on Twitter or call him at 792-5037.

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